Samuel Paul Raj

Two-stage processes of homogenous catalysed transesterification of high free fatty acid crude oil of rubber seed

Biodiesel is a diesel replacement and renewable fuel that is manufactured from vegetable oils, animal fats or waste cooking oils. The production of biodiesel from edible oil is currently much more expensive than hydrocarbon-based fuel, due to the relatively high cost of edible oils. The cost of biodiesel can be reduced by using non-edible oils instead of edible oils. The purpose of the present study was to develop a method of esterification of non-edible oil like rubber seed oil (Hevea brasiliensis). The high free fatty acid content oil reacts quickly with alkaline catalysts to form soap, which prevents the separation of biodiesel and glycerol. A two-step process was used instead of the simple alkaline catalysed transesterification process. It consisted of an acid catalysed pre-processing followed by the usual alkaline catalysed process. The physical and chemical properties of biodiesel were analysed. The quantification of methyl esters were done by high-performance liquid chromatography.

Nanostructured CuO Thin Films Prepared through Sputtering for Solar Selective Absorbers

Nanostructured cupric oxide (CuO) thin films have been deposited on copper (Cu) substrates at different substrate temperatures and oxygen to argon gas ratios through direct current (DC) reactive magnetron sputtering. The deposited CuO thin films are characterized by using X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS), profilometry, and spectrophotometry techniques. The crystalline phases, morphology, optical properties, and photothermal conversion efficiency of the CuO thin films are found to be significantly influenced by the change in substrate temperature and oxygen to argon gas ratio. The variations in the substrate temperature and oxygen to argon gas ratio have induced changes in Cu

Mineralization of Azo Dye Using Combined Photo-Fenton and Photocatalytic Processes under Visible Light

Visible-light-assisted photodegradation of an azo dye, Reactive Red 180 (RR180), in the presence of nitrogen-doped TiO2 (N-TiO2) has been studied. The photodegradation of RR180 is evaluated through decolorization studies and total organic carbon analysis. The efficacy of hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), potassium peroxomonosulfate (oxone or PMS), and potassium peroxodisulfate (PDS) in improving the photodegradation of the dye in the N-TiO2-RR180 system is also examined. The effect of combining photo-Fenton-like reaction with N-TiO2-mediated photodegradation of RR180 under visible light has been investigated. The photoactivity of N-TiO2-RR180-Fe3

Comparative Studies on Biodiesel From Rubber Seed Oil Using Homogeneous and Heterogeneous Catalysts

Non-edible oils are being lucratively utilized for the production of biodiesel. Rubber seed oil, being a byproduct, can have fiscal advantage in its use. Rubber seed oil, which gets hold of minimum industrial applications, was chosen as a raw material for the production of biodiesel in the present study. Perusal of the literature studied showed that very few works in rubber seed oil have been carried out by using heterogeneous catalyst. Therefore, in this study, an attempt has been made to compare the efficiency of homogeneous and heterogeneous catalysts for biodiesel production from rubber seed oil. Consequently, for the selection of a suitable catalyst, quantitative analysis of rubber seed methyl ester was made by Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy.